EPA, DOJ SAY TITANIUM METALS TO PAY $13.75M CIVIL PENALTY

(The following press release from the U.S. Justice Department and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency was received by e-mail. The sender verified the
statement.)
EPA REQUIRES GLOBAL TITANIUM MANUFACTURER TO INVESTIGATE AND CLEAN UP PCB
CONTAMINATION IN NEVADA
Titanium Metals Corporation to Pay Record $13.75 Million Civil Penalty for TSCA
Violations
WASHINGTON - Titanium Metals Corporation (TIMET), one of the world's largest
producers of titanium parts for jet engines, has agreed to pay a record $13.75
million civil penalty and perform an extensive investigation and cleanup of
potential contamination stemming primarily from the unauthorized manufacture
and disposal of PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) at its manufacturing facility
in Henderson, Nevada, the Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) announced today.
The penalty is the largest ever imposed for violations of the Toxic Substances
Control Act (TSCA) at a single facility. TIMET will pay an additional $250,000
for violations related to illegal disposal of hazardous process wastewater, in
violation of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
Under the settlement, EPA expects that the settlement will result in the
removal of approximately 84,000 pounds of PCB-contaminated waste from the
environment each year, and will prevent the improper disposal of 56 million
pounds of hazardous waste each year.
"This settlement holds TIMET fully accountable for the period of its
unauthorized manufacture and handling of harmful PCBs at the Henderson
facility," said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the
Environment and Natural Resources Division. "It will also result in
substantial environmental cleanup and protection for the benefit of residents
of the area, now and in the future."
"This record penalty reflects EPA's commitment to protect communities by
reducing pollution from the mineral sector," said Cynthia Giles, assistant
administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
"Today's settlement ensures TIMET complies with the law and takes important
steps to build transparency in the investigation and remediation of this
facility."
In addition to paying the penalty and performing the investigation and cleanup,
the settlement requires TIMET to electronically submit monitoring data
biannually to EPA for three years showing that it is appropriately managing any
PCBs it generates. TIMET has also agreed to allow the Nevada Division of
Environmental Protection (NDEP) to make public TIMET's EPA-approved work plans
and completed work reports through a dedicated website.
The company has already spent approximately $6 million on investigation, site
cleanup and compliance measures to address the potential contamination. This
work has included extensive sampling; draining and relining of a surface
impoundment; analyzing the extent of PCB contamination in its solid waste
landfill; removing PCB waste from that landfill; and decontaminating processing
equipment. In addition, TIMET estimates that it will spend at least $1 million
to complete the work required by the settlement.
TIMET processes titanium from rutile ore at its 108-acre manufacturing facility
at the Black Mountain Industrial (BMI) Complex in Henderson. This process
generates hazardous waste and PCBs. In the complaint, the government alleged
that EPA inspections conducted in 2005, 2006 and 2008 revealed that TIMET had
been unlawfully manufacturing PCBs as a by-product of its titanium
manufacturing process, without an exclusion from TSCA's ban. The 2008 EPA
inspection also revealed that the company had disposed of PCB-contaminated
waste in a solid waste landfill and a trench at the plant. The complaint
further alleges that, on several occasions during 2005 and 2007, the company
had unlawfully disposed of acidic, corrosive hazardous process wastewater into
an unpermitted surface impoundment at the facility, in violation of RCRA.
Since 2007, the company has been working with EPA to bring the facility into
compliance. TIMET has taken steps to reduce significantly the amount of PCBs
it generates, manage appropriately the PCBs it does generate, and TIMET already
has corrected the other regulatory violations cited in the complaint. TIMET is
now in the process of documenting that it qualifies for an exclusion from
TSCA's ban on the manufacture of PCBs. As a part of that process, TIMET will
provide required documentation to certify to EPA that it is in compliance with
TSCA requirements governing the manufacture and disposal of PCBs.
TIMET was purchased by Precision Castparts Corporation in 2012. Both companies
have worked with EPA to achieve compliance and to clean up the operations. The
EPA and NDEP will continue to oversee multiple cleanup efforts at the facility
and in the BMI Complex.
PCBs are human-made organic chemicals that were widely used in paints,
construction materials, plastics, and electrical equipment prior to 1978.
PCBs, which are probable carcinogens, have been banned in the United States for
the last 30 years, except for specific uses authorized by regulations. When
released into the environment, PCBs can persist for decades because they do not
break down through natural processes. Exposure to PCBs has been demonstrated
to cause cancer, as well as a variety of other adverse health effects on the
immune system, reproductive system, nervous system, and endocrine system.
This settlement is part of EPA's nationwide enforcement initiative to reduce
pollution from mineral processing operations. Because mining and mineral
processing facilities have the potential to generate large volumes of toxic and
hazardous waste, the agency's goal is to reduce the risk to human health and
the environment by ensuring wastes from these facilities are properly managed.
TIMET, headquartered near Philadelphia, has been supplying nearly one-fifth of
the world's titanium demand since 1950. The company's Henderson plant, which
has been in operation since 1950, is one of the largest industrial facilities
in the state. TIMET is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Precision Castparts
Corporation, a worldwide manufacturer of complex metal components and products
based in Portland, Oregon.
The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of
Nevada, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the
federal court. The consent decree can be viewed at
www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html<http://www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_De
crees.html>.
For more information on the settlement:
http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/timet-settlement
(rml) NY